Fertiliser Policies May Be Announced On March 27

The high-powered group of ministers is meeting here on Wednesday to decide on the fate of the seventh and eighth fertiliser pricing policies. Though the fertiliser ministry is learnt to be pushing for quick implementation of the policies, the group of ministers is divided on the issue.

The group of ministers is understood to be of the opinion that the long-term fertiliser policy and the pricing policy should be decided together. It gave an indication to this effect during its last meeting here on March 21.

Sources said the fertiliser department was willing to drop its objections to the changes sought in the pricing policy by the industry. However, for this, the ministry is waiting for appropriate instructions from the group of ministers.

Fertiliser minister S S Dhindsa might not raise any objection if the opinion within the group of ministers was in favour of diluting some of the provisions of the policy, sources said.

The ministry is finding it difficult to explain all the nuances of the seventh and eighth pricing policies to the group of ministers. Agriculture minister Ajit Singh has sought an impact assessment study of the policies. The minister has asked the fertiliser ministry to inform him how individual companies will be impacted by the provisions of the policies.

The agriculture minister is learnt to have suggested that inefficient fertiliser units should be weeded out so that the overall fertiliser subsidy burden can be brought down.

Cabinet secretary T R Prasad had also voiced doubts over the survival of high-cost naphtha units in the last meeting. He is learnt to have said since gas-based units were cheaper than the naphtha-based units, it was necessary to look into the latter